Articles by Tribune News Service

Technology

Lawrence Bishnoi aide Lakhwinder Singh deported from US, arrested by Haryana STF

The Special Task Force (STF) of Haryana Police has achieved a major breakthrough in its operations against organised crime. It arrested gangster Lakhwinder Singh alias Lakha, a close associate of Lawrence Bishnoi, after his deportation from the US.Lakha, a resident of Titram village in Kaithal district, had been operating from the US since 2022 under the directions of Anmol Bishnoi, police said.He was allegedly involved in around a dozen extortion and firing cases related to organised crime in Haryana and Punjab.According to officials, multiple FIRs were registered against him in 2023 for extortion and threats in Sonepat, Rohtak, Yamunanagar, Kaithal and Ambala.The STF had issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) in 2023 and a Red Corner Notice (RCN) in 2024 to track him down. After nearly a year of coordination with national and international agencies, the STF Ambala unit successfully executed his deportation and took him into custody following all legal formalities.A Haryana Police spokesperson said the STF remains committed to dismantling organised crime networks and is pursuing further legal processes to identify and deport other wanted criminals operating from abroad.

23 hours ago

Technology

Kidnapping, extortion were Bihar’s only industry under Lalu, says Shah

Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday intensified his attack on the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), asserting that only one “industry” thrived in Bihar during the tenure of party founder Lalu Prasad Yadav was that of “kidnapping, extortion, contract killings and dacoity”.“All industrial units were shut down in the state under RJD rule,” Shah said while addressing a public rally in Biharsharif in Nalanda district.He suggested that elections in Bihar could be held in a single phase if the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) returned to power after the forthcoming Assembly elections scheduled for next month.Shah said the NDA’s record of good governance had already led to a reduction in the number of polling phases in Bihar. “Next time, elections will be held in just one round if we return to power,” he told the gathering.Lauding Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Shah said that under his leadership, the NDA had liberated the state from ‘jungle raj’ (lawlessness) and from the menace of Naxalism. “Our government at the Centre is determined to free the entire country from the Naxal menace,” Shah asserted.Later, addressing another rally in Munger, Shah compared the NDA alliance to the Pandavas, saying the partners would contest the elections with unity and shared purpose.“NDA partners will fight the election united like the Pandavas — five political parties coming together as one. On the other side, the opposition has neither leadership nor direction,” he said.“This election is not about making someone an MLA, minister, or chief minister; it is about ensuring that ‘jungle raj’ does not return to Bihar,” Shah added.The Union Home Minister also highlighted the BJP government’s religious and cultural initiatives, noting that while the Ram temple had already been constructed in Ayodhya, work had commenced on a grand Sita temple at Punauradham in Sitamarhi district.“The Sita temple will be built at a cost of Rs 800 crore,” Shah said.

1 days ago

Technology

Facebook to hold 30% stake in Reliance’s AI venture

Meta Platforms, Inc's Facebook Overseas will hold 30 per cent interest in the AI venture floated by billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, according to a regulatory filing.Reliance will hold 70 per cent in Reliance Enterprise Intelligence Ltd, the company said in the filing. Reliance Intelligence, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, and Facebook will jointly invest an initial amount of Rs 855 crore in the venture."REIL, incorporated in India as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Intelligence, will become the joint venture company as per the amended and restated joint venture agreement with Facebook Overseas, Inc. (Facebook), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Meta Platforms, Inc," it said.REIL will develop, market and distribute the enterprise's AI services. "In accordance with the JV Agreement, Reliance Intelligence will hold 70 per cent and Facebook will hold the remaining 30 per cent in REIL," it said."Reliance Intelligence and Facebook have jointly committed an initial investment of Rs 855 crore." No governmental or regulatory approvals were required for the incorporation of REIL.

1 days ago

Technology

Disney warns that ESPN, ABC and other channels could go dark on YouTube TV

By Meg James, Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — Walt Disney Co. is alerting viewers that its channels may go dark on YouTube TV amid tense contract negotiations between the two television giants. The companies are struggling to hammer out a new distribution deal on YouTube TV for Disney’s channels, including ABC, ESPN, FX, National Geographic and Disney Channel. YouTube TV has become one of the most popular U.S. pay-TV services, boasting about 10 million subscribers for its packages of traditional television channels. Those customers risk losing Disney’s channels, including ABC affiliates nationwide if the two companies fail to forge a new carriage agreement by Oct. 30, when their pact expires. “Without an agreement, we’ll have to remove Disney’s content from YouTube TV,” the Google Inc.-owned television service said Thursday in a statement. Disney began sounding the alarm by running messages on its TV channels to warn viewers about the blackout threat. The Burbank entertainment company becomes the latest TV programmer to allege that the tech behemoth is throwing its weight around in contract negotiations. In recent months, both Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corp. and Comcast’s NBCUniversal publicly complained that Google’s YouTube TV was attempting to unfairly squeeze them in their separate talks. In the end, both Fox and NBCUniversal struck new carriage contracts without their channels going dark. Univision wasn’t as fortunate. The smaller, Spanish-language media company’s networks went dark last month on YouTube TV when the two companies failed to reach a deal. “For the fourth time in three months, Google’s YouTube TV is putting their subscribers at risk of losing the most valuable networks they signed up for,” a Disney spokesperson said Thursday in a statement. “This is the latest example of Google exploiting its position at the expense of their own customers.” YouTube TV, for its part, alleged that Disney was the one making unreasonable demands. “We’ve been working in good faith to negotiate a deal with Disney that pays them fairly for their content on YouTube TV,” a YouTube TV spokesperson said in a statement. “Unfortunately, Disney is proposing costly economic terms that would raise prices on YouTube TV customers and give our customers fewer choices, while benefiting Disney’s own live TV products — like Hulu + Live TV and, soon, Fubo.” Disney’s Hulu + Live TV competes directly with YouTube TV by offering the same channels. Fubo is a sports streaming service that Disney is in the process of acquiring. YouTube said if Disney channels remain “unavailable for an extended period of time,” it would offer its customers a $20 credit. The contract tussle heightens tensions from earlier this year, when Disney’s former distribution chief, Justin Connolly, left in May to take a similar position at YouTube TV. Connolly had spent two decades at Disney and ESPN and Disney sued to block the move, but a judge allowed Connolly to take his new position. YouTube TV launched in April 2017 for $35 a month. The package of channels now costs $82.99. To attract more sports fans, YouTube TV took over the NFL Sunday Ticket premium sports package from DirecTV, which had been losing more than $100 million a year to maintain the NFL service. YouTube TV offers Sunday Ticket as a base plan add-on or as an individual channel on YouTube. Last year, YouTube generated $54.2 billion in revenue, second only to Disney among television companies, according to research firm MoffettNathanson. The dispute comes as NFL and college football is in full swing, with games on ABC and ESPN. The NBA season also tipped off this week and ESPN prominently features those games. ABC’s fall season began last month with fresh episodes of such favorite programs as “Dancing with the Stars” and “Abbott Elementary.” ABC stations also air popular newscasts including “Good Morning America” and “World News Tonight with David Muir.” Many ABC stations, including in Los Angeles, run Sony’s “Wheel of Fortune” and “Jeopardy!” “We invest significantly in our content and expect our partners to pay fair rates that recognize that value,” Disney said. “If we don’t reach a fair deal soon, YouTube TV customers will lose access to ESPN and ABC, and all our marquee programming – including the NFL, college football, NBA and NHL seasons – and so much more.” ©2025 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

2 days ago